Observational_Techniques_and_Design

Question 1

What are the advantages of covert and overt observations?

Answer 1

Covert: No demand characteristics
Overt: More ethical

Question 2

What are behavioural categories, in relation to observational design?

Answer 2

A target behaviour (example: affection) broken down into categories (hugging, kissing, etc)

Question 3

What are the requirements of behavioural categories in observations?

Answer 3

• Must be clear, no room for interpretation
• Must be no miscellaneous category
• Categories must not overlap

Question 4

What are the two sampling methods of observations in observational design?

Answer 4

• Event sampling (count number of times a behaviour is observed)
• Time sampling (record behaviour once every (for example:) 30 seconds)

Question 5

What is inter-observer reliability?

Answer 5

Observations should be made by at least 2 researchers, results compared afterwards to check for consistency, reduces observer bias.

Question 6

Explain ways of improving reliability for questionnaires, interviews, observations and experiments

Answer 6

• Questionnaires: questions rewritten to be closed / less ambiguous
• Interviews: use same interviewer, if not use structured questions
• Observations: operationalised behaviour categories, clear categories, no overlap, etc
• Experiments: standardised procedures